Natural England, which is considering 29 new applications for badger culling licenses, has revealed the results of a consultation showing locals are concerned about the effects of culling on tourism and local businesses.

The government is expected to make an announcement on 29 new applications for badger cull licenses, from nine counties in the West of England, on top of the three ongoing badger culls in Somerset, Gloucestershire and Dorset.

On Thursday, cull licensing body Natural England published the results of its consultation, held between February and March this year. Of more than 900 responses, over two thirds (661) raised concerns that a badger cull could impact on businesses in the county as a result of people avoiding the area. Over a third (386) also raised health and safety concerns, associated with the government’s strategy of shooting free-running badgers, whilst 192 people across the nine counties expressed environmental or ecological concerns.

Natural England said the cull companies will be notified of the issues raised that relate to their area, and will need to consider and address the consultation findings as part of their application process.

Bovine TB is a serious issue for cattle farmers. 28,000 cattle slaughtered in England last year as a result of bTB controls. However, the policy of culling badgers as a ‘wildlife reservoir’ of  bTB has proven hugely controversial, with the architect of the trials on which the policy is based claiming it can make “No meaningful contribution” to eradicating the disease.

Responding to Natural England’s consultation findings on Thursday, Claire Bass, executive director of Humane Society International/UK, said, “The public’s overwhelming negative response to expanding the badger cull across nine English counties should be a major wake-up call to the government. Shooting badgers to control TB in cattle has been roundly condemned as cruel and pointless by virtually every wildlife and conservation expert qualified to comment.

“Local residents know that it’s a PR nightmare that will damage local economies, including tourism, and many have serious legitimate concerns over the public safety of license-holders running around the countryside in the dark with shotguns, taking pot shots at badgers. People don’t want this disastrous cull in their backyards, the government clearly has no public mandate to continue or expand it.”

The 29 new cull licence applications came from companies in Cheshire, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Somerset, Wiltshire and Worcestershire. Licences for 2016 have yet to be issued, but culling is expected to continue in Gloucestershire and Somerset (the fourth year of what was initially said to be a 4-year pilot programme) and for a second year in Dorset. In previous years, culling has begun in late summer (August or September).